It’s no longer business as usual in one immigration court in New York. While it was customary that migrants who crossed into the US would take their place at the back of the line, the switch has been flipped. Now, those newcomers are jumping ahead of the 1.4 million others who are already in the US to have their cases adjudicated quickly.
Still working on a solution
Joining a long list of efforts to stem the tide of border crossers, this endeavor is the latest effort to dissuade migrants from coming to America with the thought that they can stay in the States while their cases make their way slowly through the court system. The US Administration has created a dedicated docket to expedite the cases of asylum seekers from several years to less than one, just 300 days.
However, there is no rest for the weary as these dedicated docket cases must still be performed in addition to their regular duties. Even with an expedited docket, thousands of migrants are still being released with a future date in immigration court in the future.
Continuing to forge ahead
Not all vested parties are sold on the idea of moving to the front of the line. Asylum cases are often complex. Trying to help families faster fails to afford the asylum seekers their proper bid at due diligence. Many times, they don’t have an attorney and have to represent themselves. Still, this fact does not offer any leeway in the normal course of immigration proceedings. During past Administrations, many families found themselves being returned to their countries and not given asylum.
However, the will to live a better life should not be underestimated. If the goal of the program was to decrease the number of international citizens at the border, there is still much work to be done.